[@RenaissancePeriodization] 11 Signs Your Workouts Aren’t Hard Enough to Build Muscle

Link: https://youtu.be/PgG_qyZmF5M

Duration: 20 min

Transcript: Download plain text

Short Summary

Michael Matthews, author of "Muscle Revolution," presents 11 practical indicators to help trainees determine if their working sets are hard enough, emphasizing that optimal muscle gains occur roughly three reps shy of failure. A literature review by Sebastião Barbosa Neto found many gym-goers stop as many as six reps shy of failure, leaving significant gains on the table. The episode focuses on helping bodybuilders and lifters avoid sandbagging through systematic progression and reliable proximity-to-failure cues.

Key Quotes

1. "Within about three reps shy of failure all the way to failure itself" (00:01:02)
2. "a lot of folks in the gym are stopping as many as six reps shy of failure" (00:01:34)
3. "If you have to ask why reps go down, you're probably not going close to failure" (00:04:48)
4. "If you can put 5 lb on the bar and add a rep to the bar to the every set that you're doing for more than about 6 to 8 weeks, you're either a rank beginner, which is totally cool, enjoy your gains, or I don't know. Like, you're just going to continue to get stronger and stronger forever? It seems unlikely." (00:05:30)
5. "The burn at the end of sets greater than 10 is a very reliable indicator of the fact that you're getting close to failure" (00:02:50)

Detailed Summary

Overview

This episode by Michael Matthews provides a comprehensive guide on determining whether working sets are hard enough to maximize muscle growth, presenting 11 practical indicators for assessing proximity to failure.

Key Indicators of Approaching Failure

• Metabolite buildup and burn: Feeling a burn in sets over 10 reps is a reliable indicator due to acidity from metabolites, which the carbonic buffering system processes by increasing CO2 exhalation and heavy breathing after sets
• Rep decrease between sets: If reps decrease between sets (e.g., 15 reps on first set of skull crushers, 10 on the next), this is a strong sign of training close to failure
• Velocity slowdown: For most people, weights should slow down in the last several reps; identical rep speed may indicate not training hard enough
• Systemic fatigue: True training to failure produces systemic fatigue where the idea of doing another hard workout 15 minutes later sounds nearly impossible
• Physical perturbation signs: Wobbly legs after leg workouts and weak grip after forearm training indicate proximity to failure
• Target muscle exhaustion: If target muscles remain equally strong after multiple sets, they are only warming up rather than training hard

Progressive Overload Recommendations

• Progressive overload in weight and reps is typically sustainable for only 4 to 8 weeks before progress stalls for intermediate or advanced trainees
• Recommended progression: each week, either add a little weight while keeping reps the same, or add a rep while keeping weight the same
• Example: if 15 reps with 55-lb dumbbells was tough, the goal the next week is 16 reps with the same weight
• The RPE Hypertrophy app calculates progression targets so users don't have to determine them manually

Training to Failure: The Sweet Spot

• For longer-term programs, an average of one to two reps shy of failure is optimal, not going to true failure on every set
• The range from three reps in reserve to failure are very close together, with three, two, one reps in reserve and failure all being super effective
• If one muscle group hits failure before the mesocycle ends while others haven't, do the next workout for that muscle at half the reps, sets, and weight, then 2/3 sets the workout after that

Avoiding Sandbagging

• Three critical features for avoiding sandbagging: (1) continue increasing weight and reps, (2) never let technique deteriorate, (3) put ego/pride on the line to push through
• If a trainee can add 5 lbs to the bar and add a rep every set for more than 6-8 weeks, they are likely not training hard enough near failure

Gender Differences in Training Intensity

• The vast majority of people who don't train close enough to failure are female because they are excellent technicians who follow programming rules but are not as egotistical as men
• Young men almost always go to failure due to being egotistical, though this sometimes results in bad technique
• Michael Matthews and Jared Feather (IFBB Pro) train hardcore bodybuilder athletes and use specific signs to determine if clients are training close to failure